I think most people didn’t want to do court duty.
SANDRA DAY O'CONNORThe freedom to criticize judges and other public officials is necessary to a vibrant democracy.
More Sandra Day O'Connor Quotes
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[G]overnment endorsement . . . of religion . . . sends a message to nonadherents that they are outsiders, not full members of the political community, and an accompanying message to adherents that they are insiders, favored members of the political community.
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The fact is that knowledge about the Constitution and the Court is not something that is handed down through the gene pool; every generation has to learn it. And I’m not sure the recent generations have done that good a job of learning about it.
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Each justice hires their own clerks, and applications are made individually to the justices. It isn’t a group decision.
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The power I exert on the court depends on the power of the power of my arguments, not my gender
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I think it’s inevitable that some of the court’s decisions will be found by a segment of the public to be not the right decision or subject to criticism.
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I think I learned to appreciate and treasure each day, because you don’t know how many you’re going to be given.
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(W)e do not count heads before enforcing the First Amendment.
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I have always thought that while it’s wonderful to be the first to do something, you don’t want to be the last.
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Society as a whole benefits immeasurably from a climate in which all persons, regardless of race or gender, may have the opportunity to earn respect, responsibility, advancement and remuneration based on ability.
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If parents instill a sense of civic-mindedness – and there is no better way to do that than by example – their children will probably follow.
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I’m a judge. It seemed to me that it was critical to try to take action to stem the criticism and help people understand that in the constitutional framework, it’s terribly important not to have a system of retaliation against decisions people don’t like.
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The freedom to criticize judges and other public officials is necessary to a vibrant democracy.
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I do not believe it is the function of the judiciary to step in and change the law because the times have changed. I do well understand the difference between legislating and judging. As a judge, it is not my function to develop public policy.
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Unfortunately civility is hard to codify or legislate, but you know it when you see it. It’s possible to disagree without being disagreeable.
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If I stumbled badly in doing the job, I think it would have made life more difficult for women, and that was a great concern of mine and still is.
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